Contentious hearing expected over plan to split Tompkinsville school in 2

Advance file photo/Hilton FloresParents and education officials are wondering why city officials are considering a plan that would turn the annex at PS 16 into its own school.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- In what's expected to be a contentious meeting tonight, the Department of Education will outline plans to split PS 16 into two schools.

City officials are considering the rare move that has been raising doubts -- and even conspiracy theories --among the community.

Starting in September, the annex, which is adjacent to the Tompkinsville school, will be turned into a small elementary school serving students in grades pre-K, kindergarten and first grade, according to the proposal. It will eventually house about 300 children from grades pre-K to 5.Do you support the idea of splitting PS 16 into two schools?(polls)

Right now, PS 16, which has about 700 students and is at 84 percent capacity, uses the building for its fourth- and fifth-graders. It will take about 200 or 300 fewer children in the coming years if the plan goes through.

The change, which will cost a couple hundred thousand dollars to implement, would give parents a choice between the two schools, a rare scenario that only exists in one Manhattan neighborhood.

A public hearing will be held at the annex, at 211 Daniel Low Terrace, today at 6:30 p.m. The proposal will likely be voted on at a Panel for Educational Policy meeting at Brooklyn Technical High School on Jan. 26.